Being “Nesian”: Pacific Islander Identity in Australia

Abstract

Pacific Islanders in Australia use the terms “Islander” and “Pacific Islander” in many ways and in different circumstances to define themselves and others. Through invoking discourses including these terms, Pacific Islanders both consciously draw on “panethnicity” and subconsciously strengthen and support their localized identities. In this way, Pacific Islanders blur the ethno-cultural and sociopolitical boundaries that traditionally separate groups with connections across a diverse range of countries. Indeed, diasporic settings give rise to transnationalist sentiment and actions and serve to strengthen panethnic identity. Using insider and auto-anthropology and ethnographic research techniques, I draw on my experiences as an Australian of Pacific Islander descent and use examples drawn from my involvement in formalized community groups, cultural events, and social functions. In doing so, I argue that the expression of Islander and Pacific Islander identity is entwined with ideas about “race,” place, stereotypes, and behavior that highlight the dynamic ethnogenesis of this group.

Caring for classroom relationality in Pasifika education: A space-based understanding

“…And it felt cool…cool to be accepted for who I am.' When describing his connection to the fictive kinship (McGavin, 2014) of Pasifika 'brothers', he claimed they accepted him 'like Ms [X] which is pretty cool.' Cross-context relational similarity can also be demonstrated through shared language.…”

(Be)Longings: Diasporic Pacific Islanders and the meaning of home

“…This is because I use my previous work (McGavin 2014), in which I describe the circumstances under which panethnic labels of identity are important to diasporic communities in Australia, as a foundation for my current research. 3 As such, this article centres not only on the effect on identity of the short-term journeys to homelands but also on the effect when people return to their Australian 'homes'.…”

Mobilities of Return: Pacific Perspectives

“…This is because I use my previous work (McGavin 2014), in which I describe the circumstances under which panethnic labels of identity are important to diasporic communities in Australia, as a foundation for my current research.…”

“…For Pacific Islanders, especially those of Melanesian ancestry, the concept of a 'homeland' is often anchored in notions of peles (McGavin 2014). McCall and Connell (1993: 263) concur with the sentiment, stating that 'A central quality of Micronesian identity is the strong cultural attachment to home and land, as it is among many Pacific Islanders and other traditional peoples throughout the world'.…”

“…Peles is a multivocal term indicating a person's place (usually a village, but it can also refer to an urban centre, province or island) of Indigenous origin. Peles refers not just to the physical landscape, but also to the seascape and starscape and to the less-tangible spheres such as the spiritscape (McGavin 2014). Peles is important because, regardless of birthplace or time spent away, a person inherits this affiliation and is said to always belong to and feel welcome in their peles.…”